Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Sand paper or steel wool to strip a bike?

I'm stirpping an old fuji, cause someone painted it black over the original paint. I've used 80 grit sandpaper before but it's hard work. I've seen it done with a file, but that leaves deep scratches that i guess you could fill with primer and smooth out. I've also heard of it being done with steel wool, how well does that work? whats my best option here?

Your best option? Go get it sandblasted and powdercoated. Forget the hard work and just get it done right.

Failing that? Paint stripper (Jasco?? not to sure on what exactly people prefer) and high-heat metal paint (limited color palette).

edit: I should add that if you're doing another repaint and for whatever reason don't want to spend $200 on a sandblast/powder coat, you don't NEED to sand the thing to bare metal. Basically you get everything "smooth to the touch" -- you'll have some bare metal showing, some original primer, some original paint, etc. Just sand everything. Use a high-grade auto self-etching primer (helps if you happen to scratch the bare metal) and the aforementioned high-heat stuff.

The primer will take care of providing a base surface over the varying underlaying levels of paint/primer/bare metal.

You can do the seat/top/downtubes with a palm sander actually... they're like $20 at Home Depot. Lugs, the stays, and your fork need to be done by hand.

I'd reccomend starting at 120 grit, then 160, 180, 220. Clean the **** out of the frame with a non-fiber cloth and prime. Can be done in a weekend.

I've tried steel wool before. Pain in the backside. Next time I might try and find some chemical stripper.

Ummm, Peabody? http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=317072&highlight=diy+paint+spray

Ummm, Peabody? http://bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=317072&highlight=diy+paint+spray

I basically just said everything I said in that tutorial, didn't I? Heh. What a long time ago, that was written. Disc wheel era. :D:D

right anglegrinder and wire wheel you can allso use a wire wheel on a drill.. i did this on my old raleigh and then used a dremel for the tight spots worked like buddduuhhh

ive been using sanding bits on my dremel to take the paint off my project frame...is there a wire wheel for the dremel?

right anglegrinder and wire wheel you can allso use a wire wheel on a drill.. i did this on my old raleigh and then used a dremel for the tight spots worked like buddduuhhh

This is what I did as well. The wire wheel leaves you with a great even brushed steel that I decided to keep unpainted. Make sure you are ready to prime right away or it will rust faster than... a speeding cheetah.

thanks for the tips. I'm a student, meaning i'm broke, so getting it sandblasted is pretty much out of the question. I'm going to go by homedepot and get a palm sander or something.

Chummdizzle if your a student check your university craft center. Mine has a sandblaster that I can use for $3 a day or $10 a term! it's really nice and I find most people never think to explore that venue. just a tip that'll save you tons of time!

thanks for the tips. I'm a student, meaning i'm broke, so getting it sandblasted is pretty much out of the question. I'm going to go by homedepot and get a palm sander or something.

sand blasting isnt too bad. definitely could be done under $100 (i've heard of some strip AND powder coat jobs coming in around that much) and most likely in the $50 ball park.

unless you plan on using that palm sander again, it wont be a savings.

if you want the bike to last, stay clear of rattle-can paint. no matter what the brand, rust resistance and durability will be secondary to a good powder coat.

if you are really on a budget and don't care, just spray it like it is. stripping to bare metal just to re-rattle can doesn't make sense.

Just get a can of industrial paint stripper, a paint brush, steel wool and some 1200 grit sand paper. That and a little bit of elbow grease will do the job.

sand blasting isnt too bad. definitely could be done under $100 (i've heard of some strip AND powder coat jobs coming in around that much) and most likely in the $50 ball park.

unless you plan on using that palm sander again, it wont be a savings.

if you want the bike to last, stay clear of rattle-can paint. no matter what the brand, rust resistance and durability will be secondary to a good powder coat.

if you are really on a budget and don't care, just spray it like it is. stripping to bare metal just to re-rattle can doesn't make sense.

Open the sander package CAREFULLY, dont use the included sandpaper, use the sander, clean VERY WELL and package everything up carefully.

Return to an indifferent cashier at Home Depot.

Out a $3 pack of sandpaper.

I had mine sandblasted for $25 and painted it myself. I started out trying to strip it myself with sandpaper and steel wool, and mostly that effing sucked. Sandblast. I didn't even think about checking at my school. Good idea.

Open the sander package CAREFULLY, dont use the included sandpaper, use the sander, clean VERY WELL and package everything up carefully.

Return to an indifferent cashier at Home Depot.

Out a $3 pack of sandpaper.

Neat. Or you could just go to the tool rental area, drop like 6 bucks for a 24 hour rental, and not be a dick. Either way.